My Photography Journey

It started around January 2019. I was a senior high-school student (grade 11) strolling down the hall when a staff called me, insisting me to join their upcoming retreat that would take place far outside the school grounds. The participants were elementary students. I accepted the offer and soon enough, most of the senior students have also been invited to the event.

And since we were a group of students, we were tasked to create a video about the event to promote it on social media. One of us thought of vlogging, which we decided to go with. And since vlogging is what we were going with, we need a camera. I remember my father buying a DSLR camera once long ago, so I volunteered.

I just arrived back home when my mom told me we have two DSLRs laying around. I told her about our plan and wanted to bring a camera with me. Now, these two cameras aren’t exactly alike, specifications-wise.

The first camera is the KissX3/500D/T1i, made in May 2009. I don’t remember my father buying this, so I presumed it was from my sister’s ex-boyfriend who takes stunning portraits. This came with the standard kit lens.

The second camera is what I remember my father buying. It is the KissX7/100D/SL1, made in March 2013. We have the white body, paired with a pancake and a telephoto lens.

I was advised to bring the KissX3 since it is the oldest and probably the cheapest to fix if something bad were to happen. I really had no idea how to operate a camera, let alone turn it on, so at the event, we used the automatic settings throughout the day. There was this one time when while we were recording videos, the camera would randomly just stop recording—we had no idea what was causing it (it took me a year to find the problem).

After the event, I also volunteered to compile and edit the videos and photographs we captured throughout the retreat. And they loved it, so much so, that we were again invited to another upcoming following retreat, but this time with high-school students as the participants.

Yes, we did use the automatic settings again. I really feel sorry for the students blinded by the flash because the event lasted until midnight—two times.

The retreat ended and I was still in school when the then principal called me. He was the nicest and most down-to-earth kind of principal I have ever met. He was also the first person to introduce photography to me. However, at the time, I really couldn’t care less, so I pretended to listen. Sorry. But somehow, even after pretending, it stuck with me, bothering me until I got home when I finally decided to give it a try.

The first thing I studied was obviously the basics: the ISO, Aperture, and the lenses. Our garden became my practice ground. I first used the 500D, then decided to try 100D later on. Their capabilities were so drastic I stuck with the 100D even to this day. It took me a while to get the basics right when using Manual mode, eventually, I did and decided to further practice it on my friends’ graduation and my moving up. The results were successful*.

*I must point this out. While taking pictures of graduating students on stage, a father approached me with a Nikon camera and from there I already knew what it meant. For context, I haven’t used a Nikon camera nor any other DSLR brands at the time (even to this day). So when he and his kid walked up the stage, I panicked. I first took pictures with my camera, then moved to use the Nikon. Since I had no idea how to use it, I am 100% sure the picture I took was blurred. If you are reading this, sir. I am very sorry.

In grade 12, I received the title of the school’s student journalist for the entire school year; I took pictures, videos, and compiled and edited them, then uploaded them to social media in albums. Since I was going to play this role, it made sense for me to study more about the camera and photography in general.

The first thing I learned was the type of sensor the camera had, which is an APSC, which really is no slouch even for today’s usage. I find it enough for me at the time because I really had no idea how to edit photos. That said, I discovered the crop factor.

Discovering different types of camera sensors started a domino effect. I later discovered what shutter speed is and how it works, followed by discovering different types of image formats, then different types of SD cards—their specs as well—and so on.

When I graduated from school, I decided to pursue photography as my second hobby (my first is creative writing), and perhaps make a career out of it.

I didn’t take college, however, I did decide to take a few non-credited online courses on Coursera. I have no regrets about taking it because the mentors were professional and helped me discover new things I didn’t even know existed—such as rules—and unlocked the full potential of my gears and my skills.

In time, I have learned to take and utilize RAW images, white balance, camera grids, shutter speed, ISO, aperture, focus points, different modes, flash, photo editing, and much more.

I decided to buy myself an SDXC card; I had two choices, the first was Kingston Canvas React Plus and the second was SanDisk ExtremePro. I have used a lot of Kingston products in the past, mainly SATA SSDs and they lasted longer than I have anticipated, though SanDisk is a reputable brand.

I chose to go with the Canvas React Plus, unfortunately, they didn’t have any stock at the time, so I bought ExtremePro.

I went ahead and bought myself an SD card reader—Vention brand—and an unoriginal lens hood for my telephoto and kit lens.

To be honest, I recently started liking the pancake lens that came with the 100D. It is the 40mm F/2.8 STM. Why did I like it? Even though it is for full-frame sensors, the crop factor really didn’t bother me. It is slightly past 50mm, which I heard is good for street photography and general usage. Its wide aperture and compact size are also pluses.

I can never see myself going back to always having the telephoto lens attached to my camera no matter the case. Because at the time, I look cool with it. Looking back, I look foolish. Every newbie photographer ever.

PRESENT

I’m currently practicing street photography because I couldn’t get any models or anyone to shoot portraits with, maybe I am just that shy.

I have tried taking landscape and architectural photography, but I don’t practice these as often as street photography.

As for editing images, I use PhotoScape as my editing software.

I haven’t done any freelancing yet

FUTURE

I am willing to go beyond my boundaries as I still have yet to find my niche, hence I’m exploring more genres and techniques of photography.

Analog film photography caught my attention after watching a few youtube videos of people walking around with boxy medium frame cameras such as Mamiya or simple 35mm ones.

As for trying different brands, I would like to test Fujifilm first before Sony, then whatever brands I see fit. Perhaps Hasselblad? :)

---

I’ll be regularly updating this article.